Once Upon A Rabbit Hole
by Ruby Redverne
Summary: When Lyra wishes to get away from her boring life and falls down a rabbit hole, she ends up in a world of dreams. Accused of being the one to save them will she step up to the task or walk away and return home? This is a crossover between Alice in Wonderland 2010 and the manga Heart no Kuni no Alice!
1. Chapter 1

Boring; My life in one word. Plain. Routine. I hated it. It was the same thing every day; get up, cook breakfast, go to school, go home, homework, dinner, bed. That was it, day in day out. Weekends it was training, running Saturday, singing and piano Sunday.

I was just so bored with it all. Why couldn't life be more interesting, like in all the stories. I just wanted something to happen for once.

Well you know what they say: Be careful what you wish for.


	2. Chapter 2

"Come on Lyra!" I heard a voice shout from down the path. Looking up I spotted my younger sister, by only a year, Alice ahead of me already at the school gates. She waited until I had caught up before she started rambling on as usual about all manner of things, from her maths class to mythology, books to boys and so was always hard to keep a conversation with her, she was always hyper.

We got to the building just as the bell rang signalling the start of the day. With a quick 'see ya later sis''' Alice skipped off to her first lesson. I rolled my eyes and chuckled, she always made me laugh. I checked my timetable: first lesson PE.

Good my favourite lesson, next to music.

Walking to the PE block to get changed, I felt someone drape an arm round my shoulder in a friendly manner, before the person looped there arm around my neck effectively putting me in a headlock and proceeded to fluff up my hair. When they released my I flattened my now messed up loose curls as I was greeted "Morning Lyra."

"Morning Tristan." I greeted my best friend in return.

"Hey, I was wondering," he began as we continued walking (he had the same class as me now) "If you wanted to hang out this weekend at my house, play some video games, kick my ass at every one…" he trailed off.

"I can't, I have training Saturday and my music practise Sunday. You know that."

"Can't you bunk off for one day Lyra?"

"I can't do that Tristan."

He pouted, his floppy blond hair falling over his forehead making him look like a sad puppy dog. I looked away trying not to laugh. He only moved back into my field of vision and fluttered his eyelashes with the pout.

"Alright, I'll see what I can do." I said laughing.

"Yay!" he shouted over enthusiastically. "Now let's get to lesson before we are late."

He started to run but I easily sprinted past him reaching the building first and slipping inside making my way to the changing room. I changed quickly into my white PE shirt, black running shorts, and my special running trainers. I scraped my long blond curly hair into a ponytail, pinning it in place.

When we were called out onto the field the room emptied, most slow and reluctant. Me, not so much. The girls and boys classes were together today as we were going to be doing cross country through the forest like grounds that covered the back of the school field. We always used this for running as it was better than just running laps of our field. The teacher explained that they had marked today's course, if you finished a lap you started another one. The teachers would be running as well in case anyone got in trouble.

The whistle was blown and we started I jogged off into the forest following the marked out track. I was fine for a few minutes until something caught my eye: there was a man in the forest walking around looking slightly confused. I was curious as to who he was so I kept one eye on him and one on the track.

Making sure no teachers or other students were around I hopped over the barrier that marked the course and began to follow him my curiosity getting the best of me. Sneaking through the trees, being as quiet as possible I hoped he wouldn't see me. He was a bit strange looking; he had on posh suit pants, not exactly suitable for traipsing through a forest, with a white shirt and a checked red jacket from which I could see the glint of a gold chain of what I presumed was a pocket watch. I was right as a moment later he pulled out the watch, looked at it before swearing to himself. "I'm going to be late again." He muttered and walked faster. I followed him round a corner, past a wide tree and stopped dead when he was nowhere in sight.

Suddenly I felt hands on my back and was shoved forward into a wide hole I was sure had not been there before. As I felt myself begin to fall I twisted around. He was behind me and had been the one to push me. I reached out to as I fell hoping this was a joke and that he would give some kind of help. Instead he laughed and jumped disappearing into the void of the hole as I continued to fall (he fell faster as he wasn't flailing about trying to catch himself on the sides).

I whizzed through the air and screamed. Everything was moving so fast around me but I saw on the walls of the hole what looked like cupboards and bookshelves, the contents floating around me, suspended in the air. Various other house hold objects fell as well including a grand piano which I was sure would hit me but just as it was about to it stopped and floated back up playing a small tune by itself as it went. I fell for what felt like hours but could have only been mere minutes until I saw the bottom. I braced myself for impact but instead of being splatted on the dirt I crashed through it into a tiled room.


	3. Chapter 3

I stood up slowly trying to stop the dizziness I was feeling. The room was circular and the walls covered in doors. In the centre sat a glass table with a bottle and a key on it. The bottle had a label that read: DRINK ME

Looking around I noticed there was no handles on any of the doors, they were all fakes. The only one that wasn't was small, really small.

"Oh no," I groaned. "I must be going crazy." \the room reminded me of a book I read before, I just wished this was some kind of dream or I was hallucinating and that this wasn't real.

I sighed realising the only way out was to go along with this madness. Taking the key off the table I took a swig from the bottle keeping the key in my hand. I felt myself shrink, strangely my clothes shrunk with me. When it stopped I checked I still had the key, which I did and ran to the door. Unlocking it quickly I stepped through only to be faced with a stone path between two parts of a forest.

"Finally you made it."

I jumped at the sound of the voice. Turning quickly I saw the same guy from before only now he had a pair of white rabbit ears protruding from his white hair and thin wire glasses perched on his nose.

Wait! White Rabbit! This couldn't be happening. "This is messed up."

He didn't seem to have heard me. "I knew you were the right one. I knew it."

A young girl, about 12, stepped out of the trees next to him. "I'm not convinced." She said the mouse like ears she had twitching.

Dore mouse!

"Well I am. I've been up there for weeks trailing one Alice after the next to no luck. But I'm sure this time." He told her pushing the glasses up his nose.

Before I could ask just what on earth was going on we were joined by two twin boys both in black shorts with jackets and caps, one in red and the other in blue, who came bounding down the path shouting "You found her! You found her!" My eyes widened when I noticed they both had a blade in one hand as they ran towards me. The twins jumped on me, making sure not to stab me, and I fell to the ground as they both hugged me.

"Dum! Dee!" the Rabbit shouted. "Get off of her!"

They jumped up and pouted but stepped away.

Dum? Dee? Ah yes: The Tweedles.

"You got Alice back?" one of the asked. The rabbit nodded.

I blinked. "Hold on. Did you say Alice?"

"Yes." The rabbit told me. "You're our Alice."

"But I'm not Alice. My name is Lyra."

"Told you," the mouse said in a sing song voice. "Peter screwed up again."

"Mali, please." He said getting agitated with the child. "I was so sure this time."

"We should take her to Absolum." One of the twins shouted. Peter, the rabbit, considered it for a moment before nodding.

"Yes, but she can't go like that." He picked up a bag that had been at his feet. My school bag. "Here."

I took it and looked inside. My books were still there as well as my uniform. But it was different; there was an ankle length skirt instead of my trousers. I never wear skirts. I raised my eyebrows but they were already walking away. I ran after them. "Hey wait, you want me to wear this, but where am I going to change?"

Peter walked ahead to where a small hut sat on the edge of the forest next to the path partly concealed by bushes. He opened the door for me and I stepped in changing quickly in the dim light and stepping out pulling the backpack onto my back over my blouse. I didn't ask why there was a random hut in the forest because I most likely wouldn't get a straight answer. None of my questions had really been answered yet. I felt weird and exposed in a skirt. I never wore one, ever.

"Well at least she cleans up nicely." Mali commented. I glanced at her and smoothed the skirt down.

"Yes. At least now she is almost properly dressed. Shame we couldn't get her a corset or stockings." Peter commented.

"Proper?" I questioned. "Who is to say what is proper. If proper was agreed that you should wear a codfish on your head would you wear it.?"

They all stared at me, the twin trying to stifle laughter.

"Now are we going to see this Absolum or not?" I asked.

The tweedle twins grabbed one of my hands each and began to walk in a seemingly random direction forcing me to go with them. "Are they always like this?" I called back to Peter.

"I'm afraid so. Family trait."

We walked for what seemed like hours under the rather hot sun until the trees began to disappear instead being replaced by giant mushrooms. At least I think they were giant, I mean I had shrunk to go through the door but now I was proportionate to this world. They towered over me blocking out the sun. The ground was covered in moss that was squishy underfoot with little else growing except small brightly coloured fungi.

I was pulled to a halt by the twins in front of a blue mushroom that stood a few inches above my head, smoke swirling around it. Stepping back trying not to choke on the foul tasting gas the clouds of it parted to reveal a fat blue caterpillar with a monocle on one eye and the pipe to a hookah in one of his front legs. Exhaling a cloud of grey smoke he asked, "Who are you?"

"Lyra Beckett." I told him.

He raised an eyebrow. I didn't even know caterpillars had eyebrows.

Peter stepped forward. "She's out Alice."

"We shall see," Absalom replied.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I didn't want to be 'there Alice' but I was rather offended by how he dismissed me so easily.

He ignored my question. "Show her the Oraculum."

On a low mushroom, about the height of a table was a scroll of paper which Peter unrolled. It was covered in pictures with a day above each one. One picture exactly matched this moment. Above it was the word 'Griblick'. Peter pointed to a picture further down the scroll by about a months and a half labelled 'Frabjus'.

"What's the Frabjus day?" I asked no-one in particular.

One of the twins answered for me. "It's the day you slay the Jabberwocky."

Instantly an old poem came into my mind about the Jabberwocky. I couldn't remember the word but I remembered reading it in English class at school when we were studying poetry.

"Yeah, that's you there with the Vorpal Sword." The other said.

Staring at the image of a girl with long curly blond hair, in shining silver armour, a sword raised above her head as a huge dragon like beast lunging for her, I was a little bit scared. They thought that was me. I pushed aside that fear and stood tall looking the caterpillar in the eye.

"I could do that." I tried to prevent my voice shaking.

"Not hardly." He blew out a puff of smoke which swirled around him as he laughed at me. When it cleared he was gone, the mushroom was empty. Not even the hookah remained.


	4. Chapter 4

The four behind me began arguing about what the deranged old insect had meant.

Moving into the mushrooms I left them behind, or so I thought. Mali ran up beside me. For the first time I noticed the thin rapier sheathed at her side because she held it down in the sheath as she ran.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

Before I could answer a roar sounded echoing through the mushrooms. I looked around widly trying to pinpoint the sound. Crunching followed the roar coming from behind us, back where Peter and the Tweedles were. I wanted to go back and see if they were alright.

Mali sensed this "Don't. They'll be long gone by now. Just run!"

I didn't argue with the urgency in her voice. I broke into a run crashing through the trees as the mushroom gave way to the forest again. The roars got louder. I glanced back to see a beast easily big enough to ride, covered in white fur with black spots. Long claws protruded from his paws and his wide mouth gaped open revealing rows of sharp teeth as he ran chasing Mali and I.

Looking back cost me, though as I didn't see the tree root that caused me to stumble. I scrambled to get up, my skirt catching on the rough bark. This was why I never wore a skirt; they always caused trouble. I tore it free just as the creature caught up to me. I didn't dare look at it. I just froze hoping it wouldn't see me as a threat and attack. A rush of air passed me as it sniffed trying to figure out if I was a danger to it.

Hearing a loud growl I prepared to run again when I felt its claws slash my arm opening a set of shallow wounds. I cried out in pain and clutched my arm through the rips in my shirt. Starting to run I heard it roar and glanced back to see Mali stab it in the eye, tearing the eye from the socket with a foul popping sound. The creature left us bounding back the way it had come, but not before Mali had disappeared into the trees escaping the men dressed in tunics that resembled playing cards (all hearts).

A shadow passed overhead. I ducked into the bushes under the trees in time to see a large multi-coloured bird fly over, one of the twins in each taloned foot. They tried slashing at the bird's feet but kept missing until one of them dropped the blade and the other rammed his into the bird's leg to no effect. The bird didn't even flinch. It flew out of sight taking the boys with it.

Checking to see that the area was clear I crept out of the bush. The knife one of the Tweedles had dropped was in the grass on the other side of the path. I carefully picked it up and shoved it in my backpack for safe keeping. Taking the path straight ahead I began to walk, and walk as the sun went down and the trees grew thicker again and only the moonlight to illuminate the path. I stumbled on a tree root for the millionth time.

"Dammit." I swore sitting up. It was this damn skirt still. Now it was all ripped and full of holes just like the sleeve of my shirt where that creature had attacked me. Taking hold of one of the tears I pulled the black fabric until it ripped and the skirt fell to just below mid-thigh. 'There' I thought 'now it won't get caught on anything'. I did the same to the shirt sleeve so I had one arm uncovered save for the makeshift bandage I made from the torn of material to stop it from bleeding again or getting infected.

Leaning back against a nearby tree I closed my eyes for a moment. I was tired, so tired. It had been a long day; one I rather hoped was a dream.

"Sleeping there isn't a good idea y'know." A voice said.

Slowly opening my eyes I looked around trying to find the source of the voice. There was no-one there as far as I could tell.

"Come on. You better get up."

"Who's there?" I asked standing up slowly keeping my back to the tree.

"Look up." The voice was male and quite young, I'd guess only a few years older than me.

Looking up slowly I saw a boy a few year older than me sat in the tree. He had bright pink hair with cat ear protruding from his head and a fringe falling over his right eye obscuring it. He wore a short black top with a pink collar round his neck with a chain attached that linked to the belt of his matching shorts and the end of his pink and purple tail. He had a pink striped feather bower around his neck that had various badges pinned to it. There were various zips and charms on his outfit for decoration including on the black fingerless gloves he wore. All in all, he was quite a shocking sight.


	5. Chapter 5

3rd pov

"Who are you?" Lyra asked.

He dropped down from the tree, landing in front of me in a crouch. "Boris. Boris Airay."

Lyra raised an eyebrow. "Right…"

"You don't believe me?" he crossed his arms in an annoyed manner, but with all the pink it just became comical.

"To be honest, you look like a stripper." She coughed the last word nervously, looking anywhere but at him.

Boris tilted his head to the side in confusion, much like a cat would. "What's a stripper?"

Lyra spluttered. "Well, er – you know what? Never mind!" she said. Lyra felt her face burn up and turned her back to Boris in an attempt to hide her embarrassment.

"Oh ok." He replied awkwardly.

"Well, if we are done here I'll just be on my merry way!" Lyra said with false cheerfulness and walked off in the direction of where Boris stood.

"Unless you value your head I wouldn't go there."

She stopped and replied without turning back. "And why is that?"

Boris strode forward, his tail swishing from side to side, and stopped a few centimetres from Lyra's back. "The Queen of Hearts lives there." He said. "It would be most unfortunate if someone so pretty were to become headless."

Lyra froze at the words and didn't move, but felt him pry a section of hair from her pony tail and twirled it between his fingertips. She also realised he had moved closer to her, his breath tickling her ear.

"I know a safer path out of the woods. I can lead you there if you like." Boris whispered into her ear.

Lyra could feel her heart speed up. _Damn teenage hormones, _she thought. She had a felling where this was going to lead and decided to stop it there. Taking a deep breath she slowly turned her head round, and found her face just inches from Boris'. She kept her expression blank and stared straight into his eyes. Raising an eyebrow she said, "Do you not know the meaning of personal space?" and took a step forward away from him.

Boris blinked and stared at her. To Lyra's surprise the corners of his lips turned upwards into a huge smirk that seemed to reach his ears, and let out a small chuckle.

He smirked and replied. "I'm a cat." as if that explained everything.

Lyra felt her jaw drop slightly and quickly stopped herself. She rolled her eyes, "Whatever."

Boris laughed again tilted his head in the direction behind him. "Shall we?" he said, waiting for her response.

She stared at him in return and shrugged and walked forward past him, stopping when she realised he didn't follow. "Well, what are you waiting for?" she said impatiently.

Boris realised she had spoken to him smiled in return and caught up to her, saying nothing. The two companions walked side by side in a comfortable silence, and disappeared into the trees.


End file.
